


The Price of Knowledge

by PailetteHazel



Series: The Secret of the Waterfalls [2]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Androgynous Fae, Dubious Consent, Fae deal, Fae!Deceit, Other, Researcher!Logan, Set a few decades after The Price Of Joy, Sorry Roman’s Mom, fae, student!logan, where did this angst come from
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-04
Updated: 2019-10-04
Packaged: 2020-11-23 09:35:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20889950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PailetteHazel/pseuds/PailetteHazel
Summary: A researcher hears about the different stories the people tell about the waterfalls and the things that happened there. But the legends turn out to true and they make an offer he cannot seem to resist.





	The Price of Knowledge

Seasons came and went. Trees grew, fell, rotted and new ones sprouted to take their place. The creek was still flowing, moment after moment and year after year. The animals were still hiding between the bushes, just like their ancestors had. And the village people lost their secret knowledge about what resided deep in the forest, only being able to recall stories and myths. 

And those stories had caught the interest of a young man, a history student and unparalleled sceptic. His research on legends had brought him to the village at the foot of the mountain, at the edge of the woods. 

The student had interviewed several people in search of different variations of folk tales. One version struck him as extraordinary however: it was told by an elderly woman who had lived in the village her entire life. 

"To summarize." He cleared his throat and looked across the table, to the storyteller. "You believe that many years ago, your son was abducted by.. Fae?" The woman nodded, her wrinkles betraying grief and loneliness. 

"I should have seen it coming. Roman was never the same after his brother died. The two were inseparable you see, always playing in the woods together. I had warned them, of course, 'Don't go to the waterfalls alone': The stories are old but they serve a purpose. That was more clear than ever when he didn't return home.." 

The woman's eyes filled with tears, and her interviewer decided that he had enough information. He nodded and scribbled a few more words on his notebook. "Thank you for your time, ma'am. And my sincere condolences." 

A few moments later, the young man was back on the old cobblestone streets. He felt sorry for the lady, but assumed the myth had been some kind of coping mechanism for her grief. After all, a lonely boy with a depressed mindset, as she'd described, going into the woods alone? The most likely conclusion was that he'd committed suicide. But the student didn't have the heart to tell her.

Looking up at the forest covering the mountainside however, he was struck with curiosity: he could hear the river, cascading down the mountain as it had done for ages: it couldn't hurt to see the waterfalls that had inspired the fairytales, right?

And so he found himself wandering the old forest, following the river upstream. Soon enough, the sound of the water became louder and the forest opened to a clearing. The waterfalls, their ponds and the moss-covered rocks looked breathtaking.. The man looked around in awe: it was easier now to see why the village people thought these forests hid something otherworldly. 

His gaze got caught on a twinkle, on one of the bigger rocks that had a flat-ish surface. Upon closer inspection and the careful tearing away of some moss, he discovered a myriad of beads, shells- and were that coins? And in the middle of it all lay a black gemstone, shining in the light that filtered through the trees. "How interesting," the student muttered, reaching for his notebook. "Offerings..This is an altar of some sort."

Suddenly, a hissing chuckle sounded from the rocks in front of him and the observant researcher quickly took a step back. He noticed movement from the top and slowly, a yellow snake with black-purpleish markings slid down onto the altar. 

The snake wasn't of a species he recognised, so the student kept his distance as he tightened the grip of his notebook in his hands. "Oh, uh, hello there. I didn't want to disturb you." 

The snake looked at him curiously with slitted irises and let out another hiss, slithering around the gemstone and closer to the human, who took yet another step back. "I.. uh, can take my leave if that's what you prefer." He muttered. 

"Don't leave yet, curiousss one…" The student froze and his eyes widened at the low voice. "Excuse me?" He said, certain that his mind was playing tricks on him. Surely, it had not been the snake talking?

The reptile in question raised itself, still staring at the human. The thin body expanded with a strange glow, causing the young man to look away. Then he blinked a few times and looked back: in front of the altar stood a.. person? The creature was not much taller than him, but his features and inhuman grin suggested an otherworldly origin. They had pale yellowish skin with a darker colour across their torso and arms.

"Sssince you haven't brought me anything, I guesss that you yourself are the offer?" The creature stept closer to the human, with a hungry look in their eyes. 

The student fumbled with his notebook for a moment, and noticed that it wasn't possible to step back further or he'd fall in the rushing water. He stuttered an apology.  
'I- No, sorry, I believe that's a misunderstanding. I'm a researcher, a man of science, I didn't actually expect to find someone here." 

He cleared his throat. "And although I am really impressed by your magic tricks sir, I should get going and-" His words died on his tongue as he saw something flash in the yellow eyes of the other. 

"Magic tricks!?" They hissed, shooting an irritated glare at the human. "I'm one of the Fae folk, and my magic is more powerful than than you can imagine." 

"Fae?" The student echoed. "Like in the stories- but, those aren't-." The Fae frowned, but soon enough relaxed again. "Real? It has been years since we last got a visitor, but I didn't expect our existence to be forgotten so quickly." The unnatural wide grin returned, and the snake Fae sunk down upon the riverside moss to observe the human. "What's your name?"

But the student remembered his research. And if this.. creature was indeed a Fae, he wouldn't be fooled by such a cheap trick. He had to get away from here as quickly as possible. Good thing he was an expert on the matter. "I won't tell you." 

The Fae sighed with a hint of annoyance, leaning on his hand with abnormally large nails, how did he miss the nails. "That's fine- I guessss I will have to give you one, then. You mentioned that you were a ssscientist?" 

The human shuffled a bit with his feet, feeling uncomfortably trapped between the moist river damps and the Fae. "Technically not yet, I'll have to finish my research first." 

"Ah, so you're an apprentice." He opened his mouth to protest, but closed it again. Even though it wasn't technically accurate, it was close enough. And arguing with an otherworldly creature might not be the smartest thing to do. "Fine." 

The Fae seemed pleased with the nickname, looking the apprentice up and down. "Why are you here at the fairy fountains? Most humans stay far away from this place. But then again, there have been some who wanted to make a deal." 

The apprentice thought for a moment, cursing himself internally. Why did he have to go exploring? He could have gone home and finished his essay in peace. "I, uh, was curious to see the place that had inspired the legends I heard in the village down the mountain." 

The Fae laughed, an airy sound but it made a cold shiver run up the back of the apprentice anyway. "So you seek knowledge! You could have said so right away!" They stood up from their place on the ground, turning towards the river instead. "My kind can teach you about all kinds of thingss, and all kinds of eventss that'll happen in the future and occurred in the passt.." 

The apprentice clutched their notebook, not able to look away from the Fae's movements that were emphasised by their black flowing gown, and what they promised. The Fae made eye contact again and grinned. "I could tell you about the lassst human who came here.." 

One blink, and instead of the Fae there now stood a young man at the side of the river, with big eyes and messy brown hair. His clothes had been out of fashion for decades, but his grin was still as wide and unnatural. 

"The boy from the story." The apprentice muttered, remembering the old ladies' tale. "Roman. So she was right." 

"Oh, yes. Roman was his old name indeed. But he left all of that behind, and if you ask me he did the smart thing." A shimmer, and Roman's appearance melted into that of the Fae again. "The Prince truly is happier now, having joined us." 

"Wait." The apprentice frowned. "Are you saying he is still.. alive? After all this time?" He stepped forward to the Fae, his initial fear being overtaken by his hunger for the truths behind the stories. He had to research this, document this and bring the facts back to the outside world. 

"Not so quickly, my curious apprentice." The Fae walked- no, slithered fluidly back to the human. "I'll teach you everything you need to know.. if you ssstay here with me." Their slitted pupils widened a bit and the human suddenly felt more relaxed, more open. He couldn't reach that nagging thought at the back of his head, warning him why this was bad. "I want to learn." He confessed almost excitedly, staring at the Fae. "Please, teach me everything." 

The Fae had curled their arms around their apprentice's neck, who didn't seem to mind anymore. "One more thing before I'll do that." They whispered sweetly, and the human let out an inpatient whine in response. "Your name." 

"Logan." The human said softly but surely, as if offering his name at the altar of knowledge. Long fingers and nails tangled in his hair, and his head was pushed forward a bit until his lips connected with those of the Fae.

One heartbeat, and the clearing was empty again. A brown bag fell on the mossy forest floor, and a notebook and pencil fell with it. The creek kept flowing.


End file.
